Page 192 - Bonhams Asian Art London November 5, 2020

190
A LARGE LACQUERED-WOOD FIGURE OF THE BUDDHA OF
MEDICINE
18th/19th century
Carved standing, the hands in bhumisparsa mudra, wearing long
flowing robes over his shoulders, tied at the chest and cascading
into graceful pleats over his legs, the face set with a contemplative
expression, flanked by pendulous ears, the hair arranged in tight curls
surrounding the ushnisha, traces of gilding.
74cm (29 1/8in) high.

£1,500 - 2,000
CNY13,000 - 18,000

十八/十九世紀 木漆金藥師佛像

Provenance: Schotte family, Ghent, Belgium, before 1960, by repute

來源：傳於1960年前，比利時根特Schotte家族

The Medicine Buddha is worshipped in Mahayana and Vajrayana
Buddhism to overcome physical, mental, and spiritual sickness, and
to purify karmic debt. Various dedicated sutras describe his origins
differently: as an excelled bodhisattva, as Shakyamuni transformed, or
as a primordial Buddha.

Longnu is the daughter of the Dragon King and would have stood to
the left of an image of Guanyin, in conjunction with a figure of Shancai,
which would have stood to the right of the main deity.

The technique of coating carved wood figures with gilt-lacquer appears
to have emerged during the early part of the Ming dynasty, continuing
on to the Qing dynasty and echoing Buddhist bronze figures in form
and decoration.

Compare the stylistic features of the present Buddha with those of
a gilt-lacquered wood figure of Guanyin, 17th/18th century, sold at
190 Bonhams, London, 14 May 2015, lot 64.

191
A RARE LARGE LACQUERED-WOOD FIGURE OF AN ASCETIC The present figure of a Luohan is modelled in the same position usually
LUOHAN attributed to Shakyamuni Buddha during his long fast under the Bodhi
18th century tree, where he sat until he discovered the true nature of existence and
The ascetic figure with a tonsured head and serene and meditative suffering and realised how suffering can be ended. It was in the Yuan
expression seated with his left leg crossing over the right, his hands dynasty that the modelling of Buddha in this manner became popular
resting on the knee of his raised left leg, loosely dressed in a simple and a convention in Chinese art. However, according to Sherman Lee
dhoti cascading in folds beneath him and revealing his bare emaciated and Wai-kam Ho in Chinese Art Under the Mongols: The Yuan Dynasty
body with veins, ribs and knobbly spine, seated on rockwork. (1279-1368), 1968, p.124, ‘the prototype could be traced back at
67cm (26 1/3in) high. least to Kuan-hsiu’s Sixteen Arhats of the Five Dynasties period, or
Buddhist paintings of the ninth and tenth centuries showing hermits
£15,000 - 18,000 and the familiar figure of Vasu in Tun-huang and Central Asia.’
CNY130,000 - 160,000
See a gilt-lacquer figure of an ascetic Luohan, Yuan dynasty, in the
Princeton University Art museum (acc no.y1972-16). A wood gilt-
十八世紀 彩漆木雕羅漢 lacquer figure of Shakyamuni Buddha, in the same position, Yuan
dynasty, from the University of Penn Museum (Penn Museum Object
Provenance: Galerie Gerard Levy, Paris C405A). See also another figure of ascetic Buddha, wood with lacquer
and gilding, late 13th/early 14th century, in the Detroit Institute of Arts
來源：巴黎古董商Galerie Gerard Levy (acc.no.29.172).

Ascetic figures of luohans continued to be made in a variety of other
mediums, including jade, see a jade carving of an ascetic monk or
luohan, 17th/18th century, which was sold at Christie’s London, 7
November 2014, lot 593.

For details of the charges payable in addition to the final Hammer Price of each Lot
190 | BONHAMS please refer to paragraphs 7 & 8 of the Notice to Bidders at the back of the catalogue.